Implicit and explicit attitudes towards lesbians and gay men

Attitudes towards lesbians and gay men, as assessed with questionnaires, have become more and more positive in the last decades. An open question is, however, whether that trend reflects true change or rather a growing reluctance to admit negative attitudes (to others and self). New procedures measuring implicit attitudes may help find an answer. In three studies with 208 students at a German university, attitudes towards lesbians and gay men were measured with explicit scales and with an Implicit Association Test (Greenwald, McGhee, & Schwartz, 1998) adapted for that purpose. Explicit attitudes were very positive. However, implicit attitudes were relatively negative instead, except for female participants' implicit attitudes towards lesbians which were repeatedly as positive as were their attitudes towards heterosexuals. The internal consistencies of the implicit tests were exemplary. Correlations with sexual orientation as well as with explicit homosexuality-related and gender-related attitudes attested to their validity. However, context effects were found for different implicit attitudes measured in close succession, and correlations of implicit homosexuality-related and gender-related attitudes could not be detected.     

The Influence of Political Jurisdiction,Age, and Sex on Handholding in Public by Same-Sex Couples

Three hundred-forty lesbians and 62 gay males, largely from North America and in partnered relationships, completed online surveys that explored what handholding means to same-sex couples. The data suggest that lesbians in the United States are more likely now than ¼ century ago to hold hands in public spaces. Younger lesbians are more likely to hold hands in public than older lesbians, and Canadian lesbians hold hands more often in public than American lesbians. In response to the question, “What does handholding mean to you?,” 26% of the female respondents from North America overtly referred to public handholding as either a political act or a risky behavior. The number of comments of that nature was similar, regardless of whether the lesbians resided in the United States or Canada. Data suggest that full acceptance of same-sex couples in public spaces has not yet occurred, even in jurisdictions where same-sex couples have the same legal rights as heterosexual couples. Although the sample size for males was too small to analyze the influence of age or political jurisdiction on public handholding, males, in general, were significantly less likely than females to view handholding as a means of staying “connected” with their partners.     

Negative sexual experiences with men among heterosexual women and lesbians

Survey responses on traumatic experiences with men were compared from 50 matched pairs of heterosexual women and lesbians. Prior research has implied that lesbians have had more traumatic experiences with men than heterosexual women. The purpose of this study was to test the hypothesis that lesbians would report more negative sexual experiences with men than heterosexual women. The findings of the present study did not support this hypothesis. The only significant difference found between the two groups was that heterosexual women were more likely to report multiple categories of traumatic experiences and lesbians were more likely to report experiences in only one category of trauma. Contrary to prior studies, these results indicate that previous traumatic experiences with men may not be a significant factor in the development of sexual orientation.     

Doing sexuality in sport

Based on interviews with Norwegian athletes living as lesbians, gays and bisexuals, this article investigates the possible subversive effect of queer visibility in sport. While female athletes living as lesbians sometimes create queer alternative spaces within mainstream sport contexts, male athletes acting openly as homosexuals challenge heteronormative discourses by attempting to disrupt hegemonic beliefs about homosexual behavior. The sexual practices of both groups confirm as well as challenge the laws of heteronormativity.     

Doing Sexuality in Sport

ABSTRACT

Based on interviews with Norwegian athletes living as lesbians, gays and bisexuals, this article investigates the possible subversive effect of queer visibility in sport. While female athletes living as lesbians sometimes create queer alternative spaces within mainstream sport contexts, male athletes acting openly as homosexuals challenge heteronormative discourses by attempting to disrupt hegemonic beliefs about homosexual behavior. The sexual practices of both groups confirm as well as challenge the laws of heteronormativity.     

Gender Differences Among Older Heroin Users

A group of 110 midlife lesbians filled out several open-ended essay questions on adolescence and midlife. Half the sample described themselves as non-traditional adolescents, e.g., bookish, rebellious or athletic. Approximately half the midlife lesbians had non-traditional dreams in adolescence, that is dreams of careers, adventure and having an impact on the world. Women who labeled themselves as "lesbians" in their teens and twenties were more likely to have been non-traditional adolescents. Women who labeled themselves as "lesbians" in midlife were more traditional as adolescents. The majority of lesbians in this sample were highly educated professional women. The data suggested that adolescent dreams and interests sewed as a source of vitality and creativity for midlife lesbians.     

Satisfaction and commitment in homosexual and heterosexual relationships

Rusbult's (1980, 1983) investment model was utilized to explore the determinants of satisfaction with and commitment to maintain romantic relationships among male and female homosexuals and male and female heterosexuals. The study employed a questionnaire designed to obtain both specific and global measures of rewards, costs, alternatives, and investments, and to obtain global measures of satisfaction and commitment. Women, both lesbians and heterosexuals, reported that they had invested more in their relationships and were more committed to maintaining their relationships than did men. Heterosexuals, male and female, reported greater costs and marginally greater investments in their relationships. In general, the investment model effectively predicted satisfaction and commitment for the sample as a whole and for all four groups of respondents. Greater satisfaction with relationships was associated with higher levels of rewards and lower levels of costs. Greater commitment was associated with greater satisfaction, greater investments, and poorer quality alternatives. Relationship costs were more strongly related to satisfaction and commitment for females than for males. Differences in the average level and the importance of a wide variety of specific predictors were also examined. In general, gender appeared to be a more important predictor of the behaviors explored in this study than was sexual preference.     

Disclosing Lesbian and Gay Male Sexual Orientation in Later Life: Attitudes of Younger and Older Generations in Eight Latin American Countries

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this research was to explore attitudes toward older lesbians and gay men disclosing their sexual preferences in eight Latin American countries. The sample consisted of 1,539 participants belonging to three age groups (18–29 years, 60–69 years, and 70 years and over). Their answers to two open-ended questions were content-analyzed, and binary logistic regressions were run on the extreme attitudinal categories. Results showed that although most attitudes were positive, a solid percentage of participants still expressed different kinds of derogatory attitudes. Men (as compared to women) and participants who were more religious and less educated tended to hold more negative attitudes toward lesbians and gay men. Both older samples were more prejudiced than the younger one, and attitudes also varied according to country. There was a general trend showing more positive attitudes toward older lesbians and gay men in those countries where sexual minorities’ rights are better assured, which suggests that measures to protect sexual minorities and to make sexual diversity in older age visible could be advisable.     

The Lesbian Internalized Homophobia Scale: a rational/theoretical approach

This article reports the development and psychometric properties of a new scale that measures internalized homophobia in lesbians: the Lesbian Internalized Homophobia Scale (LIHS). This 52-item measure was developed using a rational/theoretical approach of test construction and includes five subscales. Research findings, based on a sample of 303 female participants, supported the reliability and validity of the LIHS in assessing internalized homophobia in lesbians. Implications for research and practice are discussed.     

Growing Support for Gay and Lesbian Equality Since 1990

Since 1991, public acceptance of gays and lesbians has grown dramatically. We use two approaches to examine changing attitudes in U.S. survey data. First, we conduct cohort analyses showing that both generational replacement and period effects are having impacts. Since 1991, older, less accepting generations of Americans have been dying and being replaced by younger, more tolerant Americans, and all age groups have been becoming more tolerant. Second, we pool cross-sectional, time series survey data to show that there has been a broad, dramatic increase in virtually every group's acceptance of gays and lesbians over time.     

The influence of race, ethnicity, class, and sexual politics on lesbians' body image

Based on interviews conducted with eight lesbians, this paper explores how the intersection of gender, sexual identity, race, ethnicity, and class affect lesbians' feelings about their bodies. Their responses suggest that, while being female has a strong effect on lesbians' feelings about their bodies, issues of race, acculturation, and class also affect body image. Lesbian feminism and S/M politics also appear to play a significant role in lesbians' body image. These findings highlight the limitations of existing theories about body image and call for a more complex theory incorporating a more diverse range of experiences.     

Relationships Between Religiosity Level and Attitudes Toward Lesbians and Gay Men Among Turkish University Students

This study examined the relationships between religiosity levels and attitudes toward lesbians and gay men among freshmen university students in Turkey. The Attitudes Towards Lesbians and Gay Men Scale–Short Form and the Religiosity Scale were administered to 91 male (M = 19.95, SD = 1.48 years) and 171 female (M = 19.23, SD = 1.28 years) students. The findings showed that male freshmen (M = 19.32, SD = 4.97) had more negative attitudes toward gay men than toward lesbians (M = 17.84, SD = 5.25), p = .000. In addition, attitudes of male freshmen were significantly more negative toward gay men (M =19.32, SD = 4.97) than females (M = 17.51, SD = 5.73), p = .012. Both male and female freshmen students who had higher levels of religiosity were found to have higher levels of negative attitudes toward both lesbians and gay men.     

The Relationship Between Anxiety and Sexual Functioning in Lesbians and Heterosexual Women

The association between anxiety and sexual functioning was studied in relation to women's sexual orientation. Participants in lesbian relationships (n = 42) and heterosexual relationships (n = 78) completed the Multidimensional Anxiety Questionnaire and Female Sexual Function Index. No difference was found between groups on the anxiety measure, but lesbians scored higher than heterosexuals on sexual functioning scales for arousal and orgasm. Intercorrelations among sexual functioning scales were dissimilar for lesbians and heterosexuals. Among heterosexuals, anxiety was negatively correlated with overall sexual functioning, lubrication, orgasm, and pain, but among lesbians anxiety was uncorrelated with all sexual functioning variables.     

Extent of relational stigmatization of lesbians and their children by heterosexual college students

Within the judicial and clinical communities, the stigmatization of children with lesbian mothers is often seen as inevitable. Even lesbian mothers themselves often impose secrecy upon their children based on fears that stigmatization will occur. In two studies, college students were asked to indicate how willing they would be to enter into relationships with lesbians and their children. Relational stigma was greater toward lesbians that their children and acceptance decreased as relational closeness increased. However, between 80 and 100 percent of students were willing to be acquaintances, friends, or best friends with children of lesbians. Although there were no sex differences in acceptance of lesbians, women were more willing to engage in relationships with children of lesbians than were men. Persons who believed that homosexuality was caused by environmental factors were less willing than persons with other beliefs to date or marry the child of a lesbian.     

College students' attitudes about lesbians: what difference does 16 years make?

The article reviews empirical studies on trends in attitudes toward lesbians and gay men and compares data from a 1985 survey of 297 students living in a college residence hall with data collected in 2001 when 152 students living in the same residence hall responded to a similar questionnaire. College students in 2001 expressed more accepting attitudes toward lesbians, reported more contact with lesbians, and assessed their parents' attitudes as more positive when compared with the 1985 sample. Consistent trends in the importance of these variables to the development of attitudes toward lesbians were shown, with gender role attitudes, parental attitudes, and exposure to education and media about gays and lesbians remaining the most important predictors. This suggests that strategies that discourage gender role stereotypes and provide educational and media experiences could increase acceptance of sexual minorities. Although gender was significant in 1985, there were no effects of gender in the 2001 sample. Continued study of trends in attitudes toward all sexual minorities and attention to the relative importance of gender and gender roles are recommended.     

Gay and lesbian partnership: Evidence from California

Much recent research on sexual minorities has used couples-based samples, which--by construction--provide no information on nonpartnered individuals. We present the first systematic empirical analysis of partnership and cohabitation among self-identified gay men and lesbians using two independent, large, population-wwbased data sources from California. These data indicate that 37%-46% of gay men and 51%-62% of lesbians aged 18-59 are in cohabiting partnerships (compared with 62% of heterosexual individuals in coresidential unions at comparable ages). Unlike previous research, we find that white and highly educated gay men and lesbians are more likely to be partnered, and we confirm that same-sex cohabiting partners in our data have demographic characteristics that are similar to California same-sex couples from Census 2000. We also present the first detailed analysis of officially registered domestic partnerships in California. We find that almost half of partnered lesbians are officially registered with the local or state government, while less than a quarter of partnered gay men are officially registered. We conclude with implications of our findings for couples-based research on gay men and lesbians, as well as recommendations for survey data collection.     

Comparative Morality Judgments About Lesbians and Gay Men Teaching and Adopting Children

The purpose of this study was to compare morality judgments of American Catholics and the general public about lesbians and gay men adopting and teaching children. The general sample endorsed higher agreement that lesbians and gay men should be allowed to adopt and to teach children compared to the Catholic only sample. Older participants were less accepting than all other age groups, and there was an interaction effect between education and political ideology such that those with less education and with more politically conservative beliefs were generally less accepting of lesbians and gay men adopting and teaching children.     

Feminine but not femme: the dual lesbian body

This paper deals with the ways in which young educated Israeli lesbians construct their bodies, disregarding the traditional categories based on binary criteria such as butch/femme. The "lack of codes" is deconstructed in order to bring forward their complexity and their adherence to the postmodern era. The results, based on 50 in-depth interviews, point to the young lesbians' tendency to unify within their bodies two trends: one that allows the mingling of the male with the female body; and another that eliminates the option to choose to be either femme or butch. This study points to means of social control that assure the acceptance of the dressing code as well as bodily codes by the lesbian community. Their acceptance allows drawing boundaries not only between the lesbian and the heterosexual women but also between the young lesbians and the former generation of lesbians who lived out of the closet.     

Gay, Orthodox, and trembling: the rise of Jewish Orthodox gay consciousness, 1970s-2000s

In 2001, the documentary movie, Trembling Before God, was played in Jewish and gay film festivals around the world, provoking strong emotional reactions. Trembling Before God comprises interviews with Orthodox Jewish gay and lesbian persons who vividly and movingly describe their struggles to live their lives as observant Jewish people, being faithful at the same time to their sexual desires and their religious tradition. Almost all the people interviewed in the movie expressed mixed emotions: love towards their tradition and attachment to their community of faith, coupled with resentment against a community, which in their eyes failed to respond with understanding to their emotional needs, thus adding to their pain. This article aims to modify the picture portrayed in the movie. The dilemmas and struggles of gays and lesbians who live their lives in Orthodox Jewish communities are indeed real. Orthodox gays and lesbians experience a greater dissonance between their sexuality and the values of their community and therefore face more anxieties and inner turmoils than gays and lesbians who live in more permissive environments. The struggles of gay and lesbian Orthodox Jews, however, are not necessarily greater than those of gays and lesbians who live their lives in other conservative communities. In fact, while it is almost impossible to be a sexually active gay or lesbian and a practicing Southern Baptist, Seventh-Day Adventist, Jehovah's Witness, or Mormon, it is not impossible for gays and lesbians to live their lives in an Orthodox Jewish environment. Amazingly, since the 1970s, thousands of gays and lesbians have given up on liberal environments and joined the ranks of traditionalist Jewish congregations.